Psalm 22:6 “But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people.”

[Here David experiences powerlessness in rejection by those around him and turns to God for support. This foreshadows what Jesus experienced 1000 years later in a much greater way: rejected by his own people, betrayed by two of His disciples, abandoned by them all, and turned away from by His Father--yet trusting Him.]

Psalm 22:7 “All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads:”

[This is precisely what happened to Jesus, when those watching him suffer insulted him and even those crucified with Him mocked Him. Matthew 27:39 says, "Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads...."]

Psalm 22:8 “He trusts in the LORD; let the LORD rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him.”

[Again, just what the Pharisees said to Jesus 1000 years later as recorded in Matthew 27:43, "He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, 'I am the Son of God.’"

They were insulting the Creator and Sustainer of all as He hung there on the cross. But you, Lord Jesus, saw the greater plan and chose not to defend or vindicate yourself to men at the wrong time by saving yourself then; instead you stayed on the cross to save them.]

And now you call us to follow your example, to trust in you as you trusted in your Father, to suffer with your strength the scorn of men, knowing that you will deliver us at the right time because you delight in us.

But your delivery comes not in ways that the world would expect, or that we might want, but in what you know to be best. We must persevere through the dark and cold days, like the days and years of my depressions in my teen years and early twenties, and the warmth of your salvation came to me at the right time. But that is another story, a long story for another time.

Let us follow the example of Jesus and trust God in the dark, knowing that He is doing what is best. A door will open and let the light in.

Later we will see and understand: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life!” Psalm 23